ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGS
January 20, 2023
As many of you know, my family is sort of a Disney family. When we lived in Florida, Disney was like a second home to us. For that reason, I have always been interested in Disney’s innovation and creativity. In fact, I attended a creativity event at a Methodist church a short distance from Disney, and all the workshop leaders were Disney staff. It was crazy wonderful. From one of those events, I remember a quote from Albert Einstein. He said,
The important thing is not to stop questioning. Curiosity has its own reason for existing.
Those words engage my brain in such a way that I am curious. What does that actually mean? I have so many questions, and the way the statement is worded, it almost implies that curiosity has a purpose and energy to itself. Even as a child, my curiosity and the intensity of my focus were both compelling and captivating.
In Matthew 11, the disciple of John the Baptist approached Jesus with a question, “Are you the one we should be looking for? Or must we wait for someone else?” A simple YES or NO would have been nice, but Jesus responded, not with a simple answer or even with his own question, which he sometimes did. Instead, he provided them some clues by which they would need to make a determination. I can just imagine the conversation among John’s disciples as they returned home. Their answers were probably yielding more questions, which were driving their curiosity. From what I learn of Jesus in the Gospel, I believe he enjoyed people who engaged their imaginations and dialogued with those around them. Answers were less important than the internal and external conversations. Somewhere in that whole journey, they did not learn much about God, but they had an experience God.
Let me always feel comfortable and confident in the knowledge that I am loved by you, O God, unconditionally. From there, let me enjoy the questions and the places those questions take me, as well as the new ideas put before me. Faith is no longer a static destination but rather a holy and dynamic journey. Amen.
